This lesson will cover the basics of power growth. As with most things dealing with people only the basics are universal, the specifics are unique to the individual.

An important factor to consider is that meta’s will often have multiple growth patterns, such as linear conditional or the relatively common ‘Adverse’ growth pattern, which has usage as a condition for growth.

The most common growth patterns are linear, a steady growth which will after some time slow down. The faster the initial growth the faster and more dramatic the slow down is.

Then there is explosive which acquires most of its strength immediately and only advances through increased skill.

Next is the conditional growth. The most variable pattern, Meta’s with this pattern advance only after certain conditons have been met. Often linked to the power thematically, these can be as general as ‘Use your powers, with faster improvement under stress’ or as specific as ‘Perform a traditional religious rite under the full moon’. In general the harder the condition, the larger the increase in power it grants. There is a theory in some circles that every power is conditional, and that linear and explosive patterns simply have ‘Survive’ as one of the conditions.

The final pattern is the wild card pattern. The most unpredictable pattern it is more accurately described as the lack of a pattern. Meta’s with this will experience power growth in bursts or spurts randomly. They may go years without any growth or they may double their strength every day. There’s no way of telling what it will be. Notably this is the most common growth patterns for joker meta’s and wild card metas. It is also the pattern most likely to experience emergence.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

‘Look, I just don’t want to do a combat assessment. They suck and I hate them.’

Said Mickey to Eleanor.

‘You sound like a child you know. You enjoy sparring, how is this any different? If anything it should be more fun since you can really let loose. Because apparently you have to hold back with me.’

Eleanor said sweetly.

Oh fuck danger, danger, danger.

‘I don’t hold back when sparring with you, dearest, I just keep it to unarmed. It’s not like you’re hitting me with a table mid spar either.’

‘Maybe that’s because I don’t have any secret trick to pull out in the middle of a spar. I’m just a plain old musclehead. No hidden trump cards for me. I just have to muddle along like the rest of the hoi polloi. I don’t have a cabal of secret societies helping me out during moonlit parties.’

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

Now she’s just being manipulative.

‘Alright! Next time there’s a get together, I’ll bring you along so you can see how boring they are.’

Eleanor grinned triumphantly.

‘Great! But you’re still doing the assessment.’

‘Oh come fucking on. They don’t even let me use any equipment. My entire thing is equipment!’

‘I’m sure the assessor will be reasonable. Look, just show up, do your best and make Megabolt eat her bitchy, bitchy words, m’kay?’

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

‘No external equipment will be allowed. Due to you power we have taken precautions to measure and record any additional mass introduced into the arena. At the end of the assessment you will be required to explain where any material you used came from and this will be matched against the arena’s sensors. Non-compliance will invalidate the assessment and will require you to repeat it.’

The proctor said in a joyless monotone.

‘The arena is designed to simulate a city and adjacent nature preserve. In it are the majority of materials a power may require, and your power specifically does not require any excluded elements.

Good luck with your assessment.’

With that the proctor left the arena leaving Mickey alone in a grey jumpsuit in the street of a small city.

Mickey wished Eleanor was here so he could tell her ‘I told you so.’ In the most annoying voice possible.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Mickeys had opted to skip the offence and defence tests since without equipment, his only defence was dodging, his offence was the heaviest object he could swing. He still only had access to the basics he could find in the mock city, but at least he could use his meagre attacks against the squishiest members of the Brisbane Bastions. From experience nothing short of heavy weaponry would phase the Brisbane Battler, But Megabolt and Mirror Mask were more vulnerable.

As soon as the starting claxon sounded, Mickey shrouded himself in his power, the dark smoke-like before he sprinted into the nearest building.

While his shroud wouldn’t stop anything significant, it would give a slight sensor advantage and disperse the positive ions and free electrons that made up the bulk of Megavolts lightning making it harder for her to get a lock on him so to speak.

Mickey almost cheered when the building turned out to be a grocery store, the shelve lined with black and white ‘Products’. He started storing the higher priority materials while sketching out a rough plan of engagement.

In all likelihoods Pronto would be first. Speedsters always were. Thankfully Pronto was the altered time kind of speedster and not the ridiculously enhanced body kind. Marathon types were the worst.

Mirror Mask could be mostly ignored. His illusions would be filtered out by Mickeys shroud and he wouldn’t engage in close quarters combat when they still had the Brisbane Battler and Pronto in the game. But if he could get in close Mickey could take him.

Megabolt. The one Ellie actually wanted Mickey to hit, the principle target. His shroud would block a couple of her sparring attacks hopefully giving him a chance to shorten the distance enough for a surprise. Most blaster types instinctively try to shoot incoming projectiles.

Captain Amazing and Laminae would be sitting out the exercises in order to provided barriers, hardened energy in Laminae’s case and telekinetic in Captain Amazing’s. The unspoken understanding was that Eleanor was excluded do to a conflict of interests, and Amazing was excluded as team leader

The Brisbane Battler was problematic. Mickey’s normal tactic for super strong and super tough meta’s was high explosives, which were a bit complicated to make in the middle of a fight. His best bet was to avoid him.

Which is why as soon as they found him they would send him in first, Putting him on the clock.

Three minutes had passed, and Mickey had finished his improvised armour and other preparations. He could do more given time but unfortunately he spotted a multicoloured blurr that meant Pronto would find him in seconds.

Right. Let’s get started.